Better
by CJ-T-Bone
Summary: Sometimes a hero deserves more than he gets. Rated T because I'm paranoid. Oneshot.


**My first crossover, a little sad, but hey it was an idea I had and I thought I should put it on paper... so to speak. Enjoy and don't forget to drop a review. No flames please.**

* * *

The Normandy flew lazily through space, waiting for orders, leads or random missions. Jane Shepard, watching the galaxy map, was lost in thought watching the patterns of the holographic galaxy. If someone would have asked her what she was thinking she would have simply answered: 'nothing'

Suddenly EDI spoke on the overhead speakers.

" _Shepard._ " The AI called. Shepard raised her head, breaking out of her daydreams easily. " _I have detected a strange signal in the area._ " The AI said.

"What kind of strange?" Shepard asked, pushing herself away from the railing.

" _It seems like an encoded warning message to stay away from the area._ " The AI said. Shepard admitted that was strange but not as strange as EDI made it sound. Before she could question her observation EDI continued. " _It is accompanied by another message, with the same electronic signature, for immediate and urgent assistance._ " And that was probably the very strange part.

Shepard thought for a moment. "Anything else you can tell me about it?" She asked.

" _Nothing at this time._ " The AI responded.

"Not even who sent it?" Shepard asked slightly confused.

" _The sender is simply known as: CTN 0452-9. No other information given._ " EDI said.

Shepard thought for a moment trying to think if she remembered that serial number. She couldn't, she never remembered ever hearing or reading it. "Get us closer and try and open a channel." She ordered.

" _As you wish, Shepard._ " EDI said, a moment later the Normandy veered off course towards the unknown ship.

As soon as they were in range EDI notified Shepard.

" _Shepard we are with range, opening communications channel._ " EDI said. A moment later and loud static broke through the speakers, accompanied by what sounded like a woman's scream.

Everyone aboard the Normandy that heard instantly clasped their ears shut and cringed at the sound, most felt shivers run up their spines. The woman screaming sounded like she was in pain, and also at the same time, enraged beyond comprehension.

"EDI!" Shepard shouted trying to get the AI to shut the comm off, as the words left her lips, the woman stopped screaming but the channel was still open.

" ** _A rescue?_** " The woman's voice said suddenly as if sounding hopeful. Then almost turned a 180 and spoke in a voice that sounded as if it were disgusted. " ** _They wouldn't send a rescue. Not for us, not for him, not for me._** " The voice said changing sadly very quickly. " **W** ** _e don't get a rescue, it's too late._** " The voice continued as if speaking in a normal manner. " ** _He's already gone, so am I._** "

Speaking now, Shepard felt, would interrupt an already ongoing conversation. The trouble was: it seemed the woman on the other end was having said conversation with herself.

" ** _We don't need rescue._** " The voice said sounding sad. The same woman, Shepard was sure of it, suddenly continued speak but sounded incredibly anger all of a sudden. " ** _Of course we don't need a rescue! Were fine, everything's fine! LEAVE US ALONE!_** " She suddenly shouted.

Shepard blinked a few times then opened her mouth to respond but the woman didn't seem to be finished and spoke in the softest, most fearful, voice Shepard had ever heard.

" ** _Please don't leave us._** " The voice whispered, sounding on the verge of tears. The communication cut and Shepard was left with her jaw hanging in confusion. Everyone who had heard the communication shared glances with the nearest person as if they held the answer to what the hell they had just heard.

" _I cannot reopen the connection Shepard, something is preventing me from doing so._ " EDI informed the commander.

Shepard just stood there blinking a few times trying to think. She wasn't a fool. Whoever that was had completely lost their mind. For what reason she wasn't sure, but the fact of the matter was that crazy people were very difficult to deal with. Regardless, they needed help, and Shepard was never one to ignore a cry for help.

"EDI prepare the shuttle, I need to get onto that ship." She said

" _On it Shepard._ " The AI replied.

* * *

Shepard sat quietly on the shuttle as it rode to the ship, wondering what she might find there.

The ship itself had seen much better days, ice and rust covered a good majority of the desolate craft, though seemed very intact.

She came to an airlock that didn't seem able interface with Shepard's shuttle and so the commander decided that a spacewalk was in order. With her helmet on, she floated to the airlock, only to find that the hydraulics had lost so much fluid that the doors could be pushed open with ease. She pushed them open and floated inside.

There was no gravity but that did not stop her from using magnetic boots. She connected to the ground and began looking for the source of the original communication.

" _Shepard, the communications relay runs on a separate power supply. I have traced the source to a room near the cargo bay._ " EDI informed the commander. To help further a waypoint was placed on her HUD. Slowly Shepard moved toward the location.

The marker led her to a door that seemed to be in working condition but was locked, though, not sealed, if the bullet holes were any indication.

Shepard approached the door and eyed the keypad. A strange keypad if she had ever seen, there was only one button. She touched the button and the keypad quickly began flashing red, blue, green before settling on blue. The door opened silently in the void of space but Shepard would have guessed that it wasn't a smooth opening.

Inside there were two rows of what looked like sleeping pods, all but one of the were open. In the middle of the room there was a small console, but it was what was on the console that grabbed Shepard's attention. A small blue hologram of a woman. She was sitting on the console, with her legs pulled against he chest and her forehead on her knees. Her shoulders shaking. Shepard would have guessed that if there was air then she would have heard sobbing.

" _Shepard, I advise caution, my scans indicate that that is an AI._ " Shepard didn't tense or panic. There were no weapons in this room and nothing that could harm her, it was just an AI.

"Can you get her attention EDI?" Shepard asked.

" _One moment._ " EDI said. There was a small pause when suddenly the hologram stopped crying and looked up at Shepard.

The hologram didn't stand up, instead, it simply glitched into a standing position.

" ** _Hello._** " A pleasant voice came over the radio, the word was mimed by the hologram.

"I am Commander Shepard of the Normandy." Shepard said. "I came here to investigate a..."

" ** _I don't know a Commander Shepard._** " The hologram said, distracted. " ** _Are you here to rescue us?_** " She asked.

"Yes." Shepard said slowly.

The AI seemed completely lost, turning its head left then right before it ended up looking at the only cryotube that was closed. " ** _We don't a rescue, we are fine..._** " The AI said softly, suddenly the hologram glitched from blue to rapidly blinking red, the woman was holding out her arms in a pleading gesture, her face somewhere between enraged and distressed. " ** _What took you so long! You have to help him, he's going into cardiac arrest!_** " She shouted.

Shepard was about to do something but then the hologram glitched again it began walking lazily around the console.

" ** _He's dead, he died long ago..._** " It glitched again and held the same desperate expression, but sideways, as if it were arguing with its own hologram. "... ** _He's not dead! He's a Spartan, Spartan's can't die!_** " The console glitched again, a calm posture with hands clasped behind her back, staring away from the closed pod. " ** _Spartan 117, listed MIA._** " The hologram glitched again and suddenly it was seated again, head on knees, crying.

Shepard looked at the closed pod and approached it. Peering into the tube it was clear that the cryo had failed at some point in time and only a large armoured being remained with the number 117 written on the left part of its chest. Looking back to the AI, Shepard asked. "Is this Spartan 117?" She asked.

The hologram looked up at her, changed its glance to the man in the armour and did nothing more and just continued to stare. " ** _Yes._** " It said softly. Suddenly the hologram glitched into standing position, a fearsome posture of pure rage being projected to Shepard. " ** _GET AWAY FROM HIM!_** " She shouted.

Shepard jumped backwards caught off guard by the outburst. "Is he dead?" Shepard asked after a moment.

The hologram flashed of a woman in hundreds of positions of grief before settling on a standing woman with hands calmly behind her back. " ** _Yes, his cryopod ran out of energy and he died from asphyxiation some time ago._** "

"How long ago?" Shepard asked.

Parts of the hologram began to turn to static before stabilising. " ** _Some time ago._** " She repeated in the exact same tone as before.

Deciding that she wasn't going to get much more info regarding that, Shepard tried another question. "Who was he?" Shepard asked.

The entire hologram began to static in blue and red as it spoke in a broken voice. " ** _Spartan 117..._** " She began in a business type voice then suddenly continued in a more fond tone. " ** _He was the one who saved me..._** " A proud tone proceeded. " ** _He was the one who saved humanity!..._** " An angry tone followed. " ** _He left me alone..._** " Sad "... ** _He died for me..._** " Happy. " ** _He loved me._** " Sad " ** _I loved him._** " Calm " ** _It would never have worked John, you know that._** " She continued as if talking to the man himself. She smiled suddenly. " ** _Don't make a girl a promise... If you know you can't keep it..._** " She trailed off. Her hologram stabilised completely and she spoke through Shepard directly at the man himself. " ** _Wake up, John. I need you._** " She said softly, the cryopod shifted to life and opened up with the hologram smiling. " ** _I need you..._** " Her hologram glitched and she was seated and crying again.

Shepard watched the hologram for a moment, feeling like she was intruding on something that had once been very special. She looked to the armour that supposedly held a man named John. She spotted a broken seal in the neck area and automatically knew he was dead. Without really knowing why, she reached and grabbed the helmet. She twisted it gently, trying to be as respectful to the dead man as she could, and lifted the helmet slowly.

What she saw was completely beyond what she expected. She had expected some rotting corpse, no, instead it was much worse. There was just a light brown skull, no skin, no hair, nothing else, just a skull.

Shepard looked into the eye socket, as if she could see the man that was once there.

" ** _John._** " The AI said sounding like she was in tears. Shepard looked to the hologram only to witness the hologram walk off the console and slowly grow to full size.

Shepard stepped out of the way, trying her best not to get between the AI and the skeleton in the armour.

The hologram lifted a hand and ran it across the skull and trailing it down the chest piece, paying special attention to the number 117. The AI smiled sadly. " ** _I've always wanted to do that._** " She choked on her words, suppressing a sob. Leaning upwards the hologram placed a kiss on the skull where lips might have once been. " ** _I love you._** " Was all Shepard heard before the hologram glitched and vanished from sight, not back to the console, it was just gone.

Shepard walked to the skeleton again and stared into the eye sockets once more, she looked at the helmet in her hands but only saw her reflection in the visor.

Shepard put the helmet back onto the armour and whispered quietly. "You deserved better." She said turning and leaving the two alone, at peace.


End file.
